Li Tianyue had returned.
The God of War, Qiu Mang'er, a soldier who had honored his promises his entire life, had returned to his homeland and died on the battlefield in the final moments of his life, serving as Prince Yu's personal guard.
On the spirit ark, there was now a new contingent of cultivators from Duskwild Prefecture.
These cultivators carried Prince Yu's orders. They remained silent on the spirit ark and did not show their faces.
The ark came to a stop outside Solaria City, and the aura emanating from within was enough to make anyone keep a wide berth.
"Void Refining cultivators."
The Boss of Skynet leaned against the city wall, staring intently at the floating spirit ark.
He sighed. "Qiu Mang'er really did follow a good master back then. If he hadn't been so bound by his promises, he would have been enjoying a life of comfort with Prince Yu long ago."
"Boss, that thing inside… how does it compare to you?" Han Yun couldn't help but shudder as he felt the demonic Qi emanating from the spirit ark.
"A Void Refining expert has a lifespan of fifty thousand years. How long have I been alive? The gap between us is immense."
The Boss gave a self-deprecating smile.
"I'm not even a match for one of its fingers. But I do have a knack for escaping with my life."
"That thing inside… is that powerful?"
Han Yun was aghast.
The old man laughed. "You haven't even fully comprehended the Divinity Transformation realm, so how could you possibly understand Void Refining? Alright now, get ready. From the Li family's posture, it looks like it's going to be a vicious battle once we get to the Duravia Trade Prefecture."
"Mm."
The faces of the Skynet members grew heavy. They had come from the Duravia Trade Prefecture, so they knew better than anyone what a dangerous place it truly was.
...
Inside Merit City.
As Merit City's teleportation formation flashed continuously, cultivators from the Azure Cloud Region appeared one after another. Without a word, they made their way to the Inner City. There, by a lake with sparkling waves, they sat down cross-legged wherever they pleased.
The three territories of Azure Cloud were now ruled by three great powers: the Mi family in the west, the Jiang family in the east, and the Li family in the central lands.
Among the many great sects that had survived, the five largest—the Heavenly Eye Ghost Sect, Longevity Mountain, the Azure Cloud Pavilion, the Black Tortoise Sect, and the Myriad Arts Sect—were now stationed in the north, guarding the border with the Wu Clan near the Endless Forest and developing the territory they had conquered years ago.
There were also mid-sized powers, which were located throughout the various parts of Azure Cloud.
In the south was the Li family's Hundred Treasures Mountain, which bordered Eternal Sun Prefecture, handled the commerce of Azure Cloud, and conducted trade with the entire Azure Dynasty.
And now, the leaders of all these great powers had come to receive their orders.
For many years now, the Li family had rarely needed to issue direct commands in Azure Cloud, but they knew with absolute clarity that whether it was a sect disciple or a common mortal, the people of Azure Cloud already held the Li family in the highest esteem.
Any child in the Azure Cloud Region with outstanding aptitude or a resolute Dao Heart could obtain a cultivation method from Hundred Treasures Mountain.
This was to say nothing of the great sects; Azure Cloud was an infertile land to begin with, and if they wanted to acquire cultivation resources, they had to request that Hundred Treasures Mountain procure them from all over the world.
Furthermore, when there were important matters to attend to, there were always immense benefits to be had.
When Eternal Sun Prefecture fell into the Li family's hands, how many powers received Spirit Mines, Spirit Herb Mountains, and Secret Realms from the spoils?
The Li family knew one thing for certain: after Eternal Sun was conquered, Daoist Tiangui of the Black Tortoise Sect had ordered his elders and disciples to desperately recruit new members.
Even after forty years of recruiting, they still didn't have enough people to manage all the Spirit Mines and Spirit Herb Mountains within their new territory...
And this time, the various powers of Azure Cloud, both large and small, were extremely solemn.
They had received the news: the Li family was finally going to make a move on the Duravia Trade Prefecture.
The people of Azure Cloud had always vied with the Eternal Sun Prefecture, but there had never been a major war with the Duravia Trade Prefecture, and they had never even set foot in the territory of the Duravia Trade Prefecture.
Duravia Trade Prefecture was even larger than Eternal Sun. Eternal Sun had seven regions; Duravia Trade Prefecture had twelve.
Take Azure Cloud Region, for instance. After so many years, and only by using the vast resources it had recently acquired, it had finally shed its former title of 'Barren Land' and could now be considered a power of upper-middle strength.
Including Daoist Shanchen, who guarded the north and other hidden forces, Azure Cloud had a total of five Divinity Transformation cultivators, most of whom had only reached that realm within the last two hundred years.
In Eternal Sun Prefecture, counting all the rogue cultivators and reclusive clans, there were probably thirty to forty Divinity Transformation experts.
And Duravia Trade Prefecture?
It was said that under the administration of the Three Great Immortal Sects, the twelve regions of the Duravia Trade Prefecture were orderly and well-disciplined, completely free from internal strife.
Half of their Divinity Transformation cultivators resided within those three sects. Below them were various subordinate family powers, which were in turn made to hold each other in check; basically, every single region had one or two pairs of rival Divinity Transformation clans.
Their number of Divinity Transformation cultivators could only be several times greater than that of the Eternal Sun Prefecture.
And each of those clans had its own specialty, its own unique methods. Their Dharma Treasures, grand formations, and other hidden trump cards could also be counted as part of their combat strength.
The great powers of the Eternal Sun Prefecture were now, under the Li family's strategic direction, divided and fighting amongst themselves.
Only with the Shadow Division of the Hall of Heavenly Principle keeping watch could the prefecture be prevented from descending into true chaos.
The only forces they could truly command were the cultivators of Azure Cloud. But even if they were to throw the full strength of their entire region at the Duravia Trade Prefecture, it would be no different from an egg striking a stone.
For the people of Azure Cloud, invading an entire prefecture was like facing a behemoth. It was only because the Li family was leading them that they didn't dismiss it as a joke.